Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1887-08-19
orLocaI Interest.

40 ANtAbN
bIr. Doiloff had been furnishing
one Cox with means to settle upon |
and the necessary improvements to
acquire title to a pre-emption claim
with the understanding between
them that when final proof should |
have been made aud patent ordered |
to be issued that Cox should quit |
claim to John. With this under
standing and agreement John had
advanced money to fence the land
and put up house and barn upon
it; he had also 4 saw mill upon it
which was running, cutting the tim
Der and lumber. This particular
tract of land was not very valuable
in itself but had an especial value to
John in that it formed the central
piece of an 500 acre tract of very
fine pasture land that John had
bought from New York parties.
John had another saw mill about one
and a half miles from this one at
which his family were temporarily
stopping and from which he and one
of his men had come on the morning
of the fatal day; everything seem
ed to be moving along pleasantly
and Cox seemed to be carrying out
in good faith the understanding be-
tween himself and John up to
within three or four days ofthe time
when the terrible affair occurred.
About July s, Cox went to Boulder
and represented to Mr.. Dyer with
whom John had formerly been in
partnership with in certain lumber
yard at BERTRAND, Col.,) that he had
a valuable pre-emption claim up in
Big Elk Park which he would sell
very cheap as he wished to go east
to live. AS a result OF somewhat
extended negotiations bargain and
sale was reached and Dyccr without
ever having seen the land paid over
to Cox the sum of 1915 and took a
release to the United States intend
ing to fill it up in his own name.
Dyer took his family on Saturday
July 10th, and went up to the claim
and took possession Of the house
John had built upon it; on the Mon
day morning when John went over
to the mill to look after his interests
there, he found Dyer IN possession,
who then for the first time told John
he had bought the claim and John
told him that he himself owned it,
whereupon hot words ensued be-
tween them, but the matter was las
John supposed) amicably settled and
John went over to his other mill
where his family were. On Tues
day morning John and one of his
men went over to the mill where
Dyer was, the hired man went to
the barn with the horse they had
driven over with to put him in and
found to his surprise that the stable
door had been nailed up so that he
could not get in; he went and told
John about it and John took an axe
and went and began to pry open the
door. Dyer seeing what he was do.
ing became very angry and told
John that if he went IN there he
would kill him, but John paid no at.
tentlon to the threat and kept right
on trying to open the door, where.
upon Dyer ran to the house, abont
4 rods distant, and selling a double
barreled breech-loading rifle came
back and without further warning
fired two bullets into Johns BODY
one of them breaking his left arm
and the other passing through his
heart. As he fell he simply said 81
am gone" and was dead. Seeing
what he had done las ] think over
come with remorse because of the
foul murder he had committed, and
being conscious that he had taker
the life of his friend, and robbed q
G wife of kind husband, three chill
dren of most affectionate and in
e dulgent father, and the community
s of most worthy citizen, he deter
/ mined to take his own life and i'm
: medlately loaded one barrel of hi,
: )rife and fired at himself the bal
e just grazing his left shoulder, ht
s then reloaded the same barrel anC
e again fred and the ball just touched
IS the right side of his head, and h,
Il loaded his rifle third time and put
S ting the muzzle to the right side o
C his head fired and blew off the who'll